If contemplation had a melody, the music contained in this album would be part of it. Harold Budd has been writing and performing exquisite music over many, many years -you must listen to "Pavilion of Dreams" or "The Pearl," his collaborations with Brian Eno in the 70's, if you need proof- and although not incredibly prolific, each time what he has released has been worth the wait. "La Bella Vista" ranks among her most accomplished in recent years, which might sound strange given the spontaneous circumstances of its recording at Daniel Lanois eponymous house in the Mojave desert -the story goes that he did not even know he was been taped during the first piece- yet it is. The music here is meditative, spacious and beautifully performed, particularly poignant for the early morning or the late night, which is not to say that it is bland nor without intensity. To ask Budd for more frequent releases it would be a tribute to my desire for more moments like these, yet given the consistent depth of his works there's plenty to dwell on, in this one, for a long time.
